Most of the remaining cash will go toward re-signing a number of the 15 free agents on the current roster.
Below is a position-by-position breakdown of the roster. Players are listed in order of their standing on the depth chart with the year they are signed through in parenthesis.
An * indicates a practice squad player who has been signed to a Reserve/Future contract, while a # identifies a practice squad player whose contract is set to expire Monday.
Quarterbacks (4): Andy Dalton (2020), AJ McCarron (2017), Keith Wenning (2016), Mike Kafka (FA)
The Bengals are set at the most important position on the field. Dalton was on his way to top-five MVP consideration before fracturing his thumb, an injury expected to fully heal before offseason work begins in April, and AJ McCarron was solid starting the final three games and the wild-card playoff loss.
Lewis said during his season-ending press conference the team’s situation at quarterback is the best it’s been since 2005 with Carson Palmer and Jon Kitna.
Running backs (7): Jeremy Hill (2017), Giovani Bernard (2016), Ryan Hewitt (2016), Rex Burkhead (2016), Cedric Peerman (2016), James Wilder Jr.# (FA), Terrell Watson# (FA)
It will be interesting to see what kind of split the new offensive coordinator employs when it comes to using Hill and Bernard next year. Hill had 50 percent of the team’s carries in 2015, while Bernard had 33 percent.
With Bernard, Burkhead and Peerman entering the final year of their contracts, the Bengals may take a running back on the third day of the draft. If they go after one earlier, it will be direct indictment of Hill’s ball-security problems. He lost three fumbles in the regular season and the huge one in the playoff game against the Steelers that led to the game-winning field goal.
Wide receivers (8): A.J. Green (2019), Marvin Jones (FA), Mohamed Sanu (FA), Brandon Tate (FA), James Wright (2017), Mario Alford (2018), Jake Kumerow* (2016), Michael Bennett* (2016)
The biggest question facing the Bengals heading into free agency is what to do at receiver. Jones and Sanu will be attractive targets on the open market, especially Jones after setting career highs in receptions (65) and receiving yards (816).
It may be possible to keep Jones and Sanu, but allocating that much money – don’t forget, A.J. Green will collect $55 million the next four years – for receivers will force the Bengals to make adjustments elsewhere on the roster.
The coaches really liked the way Wright was coming on as a rookie two years ago, but injuries cost him to miss the final four games of 2014 and all of 2015.
Alford was inactive for 15 of 16 games as a rookie, but his speed and ability to return kicks and punts could spell the end of Tate’s run here.
Tight ends (4): Tyler Eifert (2016), Tyler Kroft (2018), C.J. Uzomah (2018), Matt Lengel* (2016)
The Bengals love what they have here, with Eifert emerging as a Pro Bowler this year and Kroft and Uzomah showing a lot of development as rookies.
It doesn’t seem likely the team will go after another tight end in the draft or free agency.
Offensive line (10): Andrew Whitworth (2016), Andre Smith (FA), Kevin Zeitler (2016), Clint Boling (2019), Russell Bodine (2017), Cedric Ogbuehi (2018), Jake Fisher (2018), Eric Winston (FA), T.J. Johnson (FA), Trey Hopkins* (2016)
It’s been obvious since May the Bengals are prepared to let Smith test the open market after they drafted Ogbuehi and Fisher in the first and second rounds. Fisher saw more time, but Ogbuehi quickly climbed the depth chart once he was cleared to practice in late November and seems the likely choice to be the starter at right tackle in Week 1.
The rest of the starting line should look the same. And while the team could use some more depth inside, Fisher’s ability to play tackle and guard could make the offensive line a low priority in the draft.
Defensive line (11): Carlos Dunlap (2018), Michael Johnson (2018), Geno Atkins (2018), Domata Peko (2016), Wallace Gilberry (FA), Brandon Thompson (FA), Pat Sims (FA), Will Clarke (2017), Margus Hunt (2016), Marcus Hardison (2018), DeShawn Williams (2017).
Arguably the strength of the team in 2015, the defensive line returns all four starters, two of which are Pro Bowlers — Dunlap and Atkins.
The Bengals used early draft picks on Hunt (second round, 2013) and Clarke (third round, 2014) and viewed them as projects, and thus far the returns have minimal. The belief the coaches have in those two will play a role in the Gilberry negotiations.
Thompson will be another interesting situation to monitor. He’s still more about potential than production, and the coaches are high on Hardison and Williams.
Sims has been valuable in his role as a run-stopping specialist and should be affordable enough to keep around with another one-year contract.
Linebackers (10): Vontaze Burfict (2017), Rey Maualuga (2017), Vinny Rey (FA), Emmanuel Lamur (FA), A.J. Hawk (2016), Marquis Flowers (2017), P.J. Dawson (2018), Trevor Roach (2017), Jayson DiManche* (2016), Jeff Luc* (2016)
This could be an area the Bengals target on the first or second day of the draft. As good as Burfict is, his history with injuries and rules violations makes him a huge wild card. Even if his three-game suspension is lowered and he walks the legal line in 2016, the Bengals still could use some depth here.
Maualuga and Hawk are on the back ends of their careers, Rey and Lamur are free agents and DiManche and Flowers are coming off injuries, so there are a lot of questions. The coaches think Dawson has a bright future, but he got minimal experience this season as a rookie.
Cornerbacks (7): Adam Jones (FA), Dre Kirkpatrick (2016), Leon Hall (FA), Darqueze Dennard (2017), Chris Lewis-Harris (2016), Josh Shaw (2018), Asa Jackson# (FA)
The big question is Jones. If he signs elsewhere, look for the Bengals to address the position in free agency and/or early in the draft.
Kirkpatrick, the team’s first-round pick in 2012, had an up-and-down year in his first season as a starter. Dennard, the first-round pick in 2014, was playing well before suffering a season-ending shoulder injury Nov. 22. They will go into training camp as the starts if the team can’t re-sign Jones.
The assumption is that the 31-year-old Hall will not be back, which means Shaw likely will fill that slot role. Lewis-Harris has been cut and re-signed by the Bengals six times is out of practice squad eligibility, so he would need to make the 53-man roster out of camp.
Safeties (5): Reggie Nelson (FA), George Iloka (FA), Shawn Williams (2016), Derron Smith (2018), Floyd Raven* (2016)
A similar situation to the one at wide receiver. The Bengals would love to bring back Nelson and Iloka, but whether they can afford both is another story. Both will be heavily sought in free agency.
Nelson is coming off the best season of his career and first-ever Pro Bowl invite, but he’s 30 while Iloka is only 23. If they Bengals let one of them walk, Williams will slide into the starting role for what should be a seamless transition.
Smith was one of the surprises of training camp as a rookie, but he didn’t get much experience during the regular season because of the talent ahead him.
Special Teams (3): Mike Nugent (2016), Kevin Huber (2017), Clark Harris (2017)
No reason to think anything changes here. The Bengals will bring in a kicker and punter to lighten the reps for Nugent and Huber during training camp, but don’t expect any sort of position battles.
About the Author